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October 14, 2008

ALCS 4: Rays 13, Red Sox 4

Pena and Longoria hit back-to-back home runs in the first and the Rays were off to the races. It was still sort of a game at 6-1 when Tampa Bay battered Delcarmen for a single, a triple, three walks and five runs in the sixth.

Crawford went 5-for-5, with two stolen bases, two RBI and two runs, and Aybar went 4-for-5 with a dong and five RBI.

The Red Sox started to hit the ball with a bit of authority in the seventh and eighth innings. Ortiz tripled to start the eighth and scored on Youkilis's groundout. In the ninth, Lowrie and Pedroia singled and Yook doubled. Kevin Cash's solo home run gave Boston a run in the third.

So the team's backs are to the ALCS wall yet again. It has become a familiar place. We'll see on Thursday if the Red Sox can rally for a third consecutive time in five years.

Sonnanstine faced the Red Sox twice this season -- in consecutive starts on September 10 and 16. He pitched 13 innings and allowed only two unearned runs, along with seven hits and two walks. He struck out 12 and the Rays won both games.

Wakefield made three starts against Tampa Bay in 2008 - one great, one average, and one shitty. He had a rough September (6.65 ERA in 23 innings over five starts) and did not pitch in the ALDS.

One-third of the Red Sox lineup is hitting -- Pedroia (6-for-11, .545/.643/1.182), Bay (5-for-11, .455/.571/.818 and Youkilis (6-for-14, .429/.429/.786) -- and that is not enough. Ortiz, Ellsbury and Varitek are a combined 0-for-34 and Drew is 2-for-8. ... Crisp (3-for-6) needs to play CF tonight.

***

Somewhere around the third or fourth inning yesterday, Jon Miller of ESPN radio started peddling this clump of horseshit:

Red Sox fans are not that far removed from 86 years of pain and suffering. ... doubts may be creeping in.

I'm dealing with the radio delay to avoid ever hearing Chip "OMG!!11!!!1!1 The Rays Totally Rock" Caray, so this really pissed me off. If anyone is embracing the gloom-and-doom-woe-is-us-maybe-the-Curse-never-really-left meme, go right ahead. Make CHB's day. Just stay away from here.

Winning today will even the series. And we were in a deeper pit less than a year ago before roaring back, obliterating Cleveland and sweeping the World Series. (The Red Sox also came back from 0-2 in a best-of-5 in 2003 and from 0-3 in a best-of-7 in 2004 -- remember?)

We put up eight runs the other night. It's not the end of the world. And we won the first night [scoring two runs].

And to hell with those people who left before the end of yesterday's game. Loyalty does not mean supporting the team only when they are winning. It's a shame you wasted space in a seat that an actual fan could have used.

***

The shots did not work their toasty magic, so we need another source of mojo (though you should keep drinking whiskey). I believe I have found it: Kids playing AC/DC! Here's a 12-year-old kid playing "You Shook Me All Night Long":

Maybe it's easier when you look at the big picture in terms of years. But there are 162 games we watch in the regular season - such a long road. To me every year is different, and they're all their own unique adventure, and they are independent of other seasons. I don't like stringing seasons together.

I agree, S1C, about 2003. That was my point (I think). Nothing could be as bad as watching Pedro blow that game and Aaron Boone hitting that HR when we were just outs away from winning. This is painful, but I will sleep tonight, unlike that night in 2003.

You don't realize how much you have invested in this team emotionally until things go south like they have the last two games.

Ah, the dilemna of sports. It's always the goal to get to the postseason. Once you get to that point, though, the season is going to have a shitty ending for all teams except 1. Of course, the Sox haven't reached that end yet, and I'm not convinced they're going to. But it's always a distinct possibility, and it always sucks.Especially when it's YOUR team, the only one that you can name all the players on, the one you can second guess the manager on and seriously feel like he should be paying attention. Glad we're coming back to win this series. I'm not ready for suckiness yet.

god - jon miller has just been talking about whatever pops into his head -- it';s like he's high on cocaine or something -- jack morris, willie mays, polo grounds, calling pena "pedro", timlin with the jays, getting the teams and results of post-season in 91 and 92 and 93 playoffs totally confused, paul blair, matsui, whatever is on the field right now, calling pedroia "pedro" ....

I think this is exactly the sort of game where Timlin should be pitching. No sense wearing out someone USEFUL with a 10 run deficit.

The thing is that Timlin should not have been on the roster. I think the Sox would have more of a chance to win game 2 with a 24-man roster (and therefore, Byrd pitching the 11th) than with Timlin. Pauley or Hansack can mop up as good (as bad...) as him, and for longer outings, too.

I actually feel better now that they're down 3-1 than 2-1. I kinda figured they would bomb that one, now that they are on the ropes they'll start playing. Hoping for a big game from Dice-K and the return of the bats Thursday.

Look at that sexy WLLLWWW - and the Sox record in elimination games. To quote our most venerable host from that day, "With the season on the line, Boston = money in the bank."

I also enjoyed:

One.

One game. One win. That's all.

Not two.

One.

Tonight.

Would also like to point out the Game 4 implosion by Wake and MDC from last year. Sound similar?

And for my final post of this game....I'm going to copy and paste my postgame post from last year's ALCS 4 game thread (which bears a spooky resemblance to the way this series has gone)

"Well, I'm sure tomorrow will be filled with "Told ya so about Wake" articles et al, followed by a high degree of questioning the team's abilities and offseason talk even though they're still very much alive in the playoffs.

Cleveland is a very, very good team at home. We've got our ace going Thursday and he's been golden in the postseason. Sabathia hasn't been all that great and we've just gotta hope he continues his lack of control in G5 rather than pitching a gem he's fully capable of.

The bats have GOT TO WAKE UP and not rely on Flo and MBM to do EVERYTHING. There has been absolutely SHIT ALL this ENTIRE SERIES from 1-2 and 5-9 with the exception of Tek and Yook's dongs the past couple nights. I'm talking SHIT ALL in the terms of coming up with NOTHING bases loaded in the second last game, going away without a peep in the 9th the past two games and generally not being able to come through in places that you MUST in the playoffs (lead-offs, RISP etc).

Manny and 0% knee flo have done more than their part to help this team win - it's up to the rest of the fucking team to get going and get some timely hitting!

Beckett will probably pitch well, but with no run support the past two games it's as if a shutout will be necessary to win. Beckett did it against the Anaheim Hospital Beds, however this is a much better team and a couple ERs (no pun intended) are to be expected so the offense REALLY needs to step it up in the next couple games and put some motherfuckin' runs on the board.

With that being said, I'm off for the night. Keep the faith, I'll say it again: We HAVE seen worse, and we HAVE kicked ass. Remember how scared everyone was down the stretch when the big bad Yankees were creeping up - and how all that stress went for naught when the Red Sox prevailed in the end - these things have a way of working themselves out, and this series is going to work itself out the next three games.

And for my one and only post on the topic that dominated this discussion down 7-0: There is no game over until the final out has been recorded, there is no series over until one team has advanced to the world series and that attitude is not at all respected around these parts. We are FANS of the team, winning or losing, and we SUPPORT our team regardless of the score. We watch EVERY inning, EVERY pitch (that Fox allows us to see anyhow) and we NEVER say the game is over until the victors are high-fiving each other at the mound. And if you do, well then, you can just get the fuck out. And take your RSN membership card with you you fucking bandwagoners.

And for my one and only post on the topic that dominated this discussion down 7-0: There is no game over until the final out has been recorded, there is no series over until one team has advanced to the world series and that attitude is not at all respected around these parts. We are FANS of the team, winning or losing, and we SUPPORT our team regardless of the score. We watch EVERY inning, EVERY pitch (that Fox allows us to see anyhow) and we NEVER say the game is over until the victors are high-fiving each other at the mound. And if you do, well then, you can just get the fuck out. And take your RSN membership card with you you fucking bandwagoners.

YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Maybe A should do a post linking to this mirror thread. Hmm, better not tell him that, he's supposed to be busy with home-type things today...